Century Series Facts for Kids

Clockwise from bottom: F-104 Starfighter, F-100 Super Sabre, F-102 Delta Dagger, F-101 Voodoo, and F-105 Thunderchief

The Century Series is a special nickname for a group of powerful fighter aircraft. These planes were built in the United States during the Cold War. The Cold War was a long period of tension between the United States and the Soviet Union, lasting from the end of World War II until the early 1990s. During this time, both sides built many advanced weapons, including these jets.

All the aircraft in the Century Series had the number 100 in their official name, like F-100, F-101, and so on, up to F-106. These planes were the first successful supersonic jets used by the United States Air Force. Supersonic means they could fly faster than the speed of sound! They were used actively through the 1970s and 1980s. Some even continued as target drones for testing until the late 1990s.

What Are Century Series Aircraft?
- Special Features of Century Series Jets
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What Are Century Series Aircraft?

The name "Century Series" became popular because all these fighter jets had a designation number between F-100 and F-109. This term refers to a group of similar aircraft designs from the 1950s and early 1960s.

The main planes that are part of the Century Series and went into full production are:

North American F-100 Super Sabre
McDonnell F-101 Voodoo
Convair F-102 Delta Dagger
Lockheed F-104 Starfighter
Republic F-105 Thunderchief
Convair F-106 Delta Dart

Special Features of Century Series Jets

USAF "Thunderbirds" F-100D

The Century Series aircraft included different types of jets. Some were fighter-bombers, like the F-100 and F-105. These planes could fight other aircraft and also drop bombs on ground targets. Others were interceptors, like the F-102 and F-106. Interceptors were designed to quickly find and stop enemy planes, especially bombers.

A key thing about all Century Series aircraft was their amazing performance and advanced avionics. Avionics refers to all the electronic systems in an aircraft, like navigation, communication, and radar.

The F-100 was the first jet in the U.S. Air Force that could fly faster than the speed of sound in level flight. This was a huge achievement at the time! The F-101 was even faster, being the first U.S. Air Force jet to fly over 1,000 miles per hour (1,600 km/h).

The F-102 was special because it was the first aircraft in the world to use something called "area rule" in its design. This is a design trick that helps planes fly faster and more efficiently by reducing drag, especially when going supersonic.

Some of these jets, like the F-101, F-102, and F-106, were equipped with special air-to-air missiles. These missiles were designed to stop incoming enemy bombers. What was unique about these weapons at the time was that their use during a mission was solely controlled by the pilot flying the aircraft.